Xing Tuo gazed deeply at her, “Let me put it on for you.” Seeing her hesitant expression, he added, “Don’t refuse. I know today is your nineteenth birthday.” She looked up in surprise, and he continued after a pause, “It doesn’t have the glamour of a blue diamond or the brilliance of a red diamond, but this necklace is a small token of my feelings. It’s the only one in the world, specially ordered for you, and matches the earring on my ear.
Xing Tuo lowered his head to meet her gaze. He said, “Now I may not have the right to make any promises to you, because I am currently just a vine clinging to a tree, only able to climb upward, without enough strength to control my own life. But please wait for me for six years. By then, I will have enough power to fight against the tree, to fight against this society! Please believe me!”
She looked at his still domineering face, knowing he was no longer the unbridled Xing Tuo from half a year ago. Now he was slowly growing up, slowly changing. She knew he was serious, and she believed he could do it.
Thinking this, her eyes became slightly swollen, and a trace of inexplicable pain swept through her heart.
- Mother’s Diary
Time was passing silently. The New Year had finally passed, and when winter break ended, spring arrived. When Qian Qi opened the window, she discovered the snow had begun to melt, and the withered ivy vines on the balcony were sprouting tiny hints of green.
The Sea Heart campus, which had slumbered all winter, was slowly awakening. Although cold still lingered in the air, students were gradually returning to the playground. Over a month had passed since the start of school, and the entire senior building remained quiet. Many students no longer came to school, as this was the final semester and everything was predetermined. Those who did come would mostly sit in silent solitude. With graduation approaching, everyone had become melancholic. Even students who previously couldn’t stand each other would now smile and greet each other in the hallway, as past minor conflicts seemed insignificant in the face of graduation.
Qian Qi often wondered: Did graduation change us, or did we change ourselves?
